Engagement is all about FEELINGS! As Carl Buechner said –“People will forget what you say; they’ll forget what you do – but they’ll never forget how you made them feel.”
Engagement is the measure of the Team’s Emotional Commitment to their leader and it’s critically important for the bottom line. In America disengagement costs business over $350B a year and in Australia $45B! Gallup studies show only 30% of people are Actively Engaged despite all the attention on Engagement.
Do you really know how engaged your people are? Watch this video to learn how you can create a Culture of Engagement
The Engagement Sweet Spot
In the engagement surveys I conduct, the average business has about 50% Engaged AND Disengaged in total – This is a leaders first great opportunity! – The remaining 50% – sitting on the fence waiting for a leader to engage them…I call this, the leaders “Sweet Spot”.
An Actively Engaged team member is around 30% more productive than a fence sitter and retention is dramatically improved – so it’s essential that leaders work this sweet spot. A leader’s second opportunity is the disengaged people – or “Bad Apples” – target them as well – help them adjust their attitudes, or help them find another job!
Great leaders have Emotional Intelligence – but to really drive results and be exceptional – leaders need what I call EQ2 – Engagement Intelligence. EQ2 involves really understanding your people, finding their individual motivators and working on these “Hot Buttons” to improve morale, attitude and results.
Strategies for Engagement
In my book “The People Pill” and in my engagement presentations we cover many strategies a leader can implement immediately – they cost virtually nothing and are guaranteed to make people feel great about themselves – which is the real secret to getting the best out of people and engaging them.
Some of these strategies include:
- Five Minute Desk Chats……these are a way to show people you care about them …“Mary, what’s on for the weekend”
- Sending out Personalised Handwritten Cards that recognize specific contributions, are timely & from the Heart
- Morning Teas to Celebrate Progress & Success Stories
- Holding a Breakfast of Champions to acknowledge effort
- Pretend people have a banner on their forehead “Make Me Feel Special”
Remember, people usually leave leaders not organizations and it’s the line leader’s responsibility for attitude and engagement!
I recommend you measure your team engagement, and implement strategies like the ones above – focus on that sweet spot to bring everyone along and create a Culture of Engagement.
It really will change your bottom line and retain – and attract – the best people! If you think of the best boss you ever had – it’ll be someone who helped you believe in yourself, cared about you, and developed and inspired you – in other words – they engaged you.
Become a master of EQ2 and be the best boss YOUR team ever had!
Your turn. Who was the best boss you ever had? Or what do you think helps teams to engage?
Cheers, Ken
To book Ken for Presentations or Coaching or tips on checking the Engagement in your business contact Ken Wright: Ken@Engage4Results.com
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